brown, almost black. Very large tan head graced the top, eventually faded down to just a slight ring around the outside of the glass. No glass lace and little carbonation,.Smell very sweet, lots of caramel and roasted coffee, a touch of chocolate perhaps. Very nice light feel. Good carbonation kept it feeling alive and allowed the flavors to really pop. Nice burnt caramel sugar and a touch of chocolate.

Tap to elongated glass at Columbus airport pub. Comes with 1.5 finger tan head over very dark body. Touches of brown and ruby around edges. Lace lasts through whole beer with sticky webbing around glass. Nice roasty aroma. Slightly cold still for an overwhelming smell but can pick out some chocolate and burnt toast. Flavor is very dry and roasty. Enjoyable smooth mouthfeel and lingering bitter, roast flavors. Light, flavorful, and easy drinking.

Had this on tap at Surly Girl, definitely had a nice look to it deep charcoal hue with ruby higlights nice big mocha tan head. Aroma had earthy light herbal hop notes with dark chocolate and a touch of coffee, but nothing explosive in the nose. Flavor was well rounded drier than most porters dark roasted malt gave dark chocolate and darker roasted coffee tones with a creamy pleasant tone throughout the experience. Mild underlying fruitiness with a finishing kiss of balancing herbal hops. Again quality well made beer from Columbus Brewing. Mouthfeel was smooth carbonation even and easy going. Drinkability was very nice an approachable portr with a wealth of flavor, a another solid example of good beer from Columbus Brewing.

Smells like a porter but is somewhat restrained. Most notable is dry, roasted malt - namely coffee with some dark sugars. Hints of bittersweet chocolate. Earthy hop notes waft about. Not bad, just not attention-grabbing.

Earthy hop bitterness hits upfront leading into a malt profile that is rather dry & bitter. Roasted coffee accounts for most of this. Chocolate notes seem downplayed; maybe just a little baker chocolate or cocoa. A hint of molasses rounds it out. At times it exhibits notions of burnt malts. The hops hang tight until the end - a saving grace for this beer. It's pretty average.

Moderately full-bodied. Carbonation offer prickly vigorousness upfront, but a more even-keeled smoothness toward the middle & end. A few hop notes linger on the finish but it's mostly residual hints of roasted coffee.

1859 Porter is generally solid, though it falls far short of being exceptional. Honestly, I'd prefer either some malty sweetness by way of toffee & caramel or a more ramped-up hop profile. It's something to drink in the event the brewpub is out of both IPA & seasonal.

So I pulled out my old notebook and found a few reviews I never entered. This is one of 'em. On-tap at the Columbus airport CBC Pub outlet. Consummed on 1-16-08.

The beer was presneted to me in a 23 ounce weizen glass. The liquid was very dark brown, not quite black. When I held it up to the light, mahogany edges were revealed. The medium tan head was a 1/2 inch tall crown of thick foam. The retention was very good, staying around for quite a some time while I took the notes. As it did fall, it left a decent looking weblike lace.

The aroma is of charcoal and roasted barley. There is a hint of cocoa powder as well. Coffee comes in the finish.

The flavor of this beer is very, very roasty. the charcoal is there in spades as well. At times almost seems a little burnt. The roasted grain come through. Coffee and unsweetended choclate are found in the finish.

The body is medium to full and the carbonation is even and moderate.

Drinkability on this one suffers for me with the excessive roastiness. I had one and then had to move on to something else. I would have it again if I encounter it but I am sure that would be only one again.

This is a pretty good porter, but straight-forward (it's what you'd expect a porter to be). Color is a black body that looks distinctly red as the light shines through it. Aroma is mostly dry roasty with some very limited chocolate notes. Flavor is roasty ("burned pizza crust") with some chocolate notes and a noticeable amount of hops (or is it just the power of suggestion from the beers description?). The roastiness imparts a quite dry mouthfeel which leaves a sticky chocolatey film in the mouth...mmmm.

Smell is sweet with a strong chocolate and charred malt scent. Little bit of carrot scent, pretty common in the higher hopped porters and stouts.

Taste starts out neutral too mildly sweet with a really smooth chocolate and coffee flavor. A little bit of smoke from time to time but mostly this is smooth as silk in the mouth. What this lacks in complexity it makes up for in pure drinkability.

Little thick but this isn't a milkshake thick beer.

Remember what I said about drinkability? This is one seriously smooth and user-friendly beer, and I say this after sampling quite a few beers on this trip to Ohio, smoothest beer I had on this trip. Columbus Brewing is sort of the Rodney Dangerfield of Midwest beer; nothing at all wrong with it except it is predictable as a rule. This is the one beer that this brewery makes that IS in fact Exceptional and notable.

Appearance- Beer pours a near black brown with a fingernail thin head that swiftly dies to a light ring around the rims of the glass. Lacing clings to the sides of the glass for the duration.

Smell- Dark and malty with just a hint of hops. I may catch some smoke or possibly it's all in my head. Hops come through more as the beer warms.

Taste- That smoke was not all in my head. Smoke malt is heavy in the flavour. I would even go so far as to say that it's a smoked porter. Hops bring themselves to light at just the right time. I'm amazed by the balance on these beers.

This beer hits the mark on all characteristics that you'd want in a good 'ole American Porter. Reminds me of a really rich Brown Ale, but with an added nutty, coffee aroma and flavor. The beer showcases the chocolate notes with hints of Milk Stouts, particularly in the texture. Moderate hops neither dominate, nor retreat. Higher carbonation makes the beer lighter than a Flag Porter and brings out the hop aromas a bit. Solid brew-- can't wait to have another.

An impressive looking porter. It pours an opaque black from the growler and displays a tall, creamy, mocha colored head. The foam holds fairly well and leaves some decent, uniform lace. Very appetizing appearance.

Now that's what a porter should smell like! Robust and earthy with some smoke, dark bitter chocolate, and baking cocoa. Black coffee arises in the middle along with a toasted nut character and burnt raisin. Deep caramelization and very roasty throughout with hints of blackstrap molasses and a moderate char. Big, bold and very roasty.

Again robust and smoky with lots of char and heavily roasted, chocolate malts. Some dark fruit, burnt raisin and more molasses. A bit creamier and sweeter than the nose implies. Raw cream and semisweet chocolate are present. Black coffee and some mild leafy hops. Not as boisterous as the nose lead me to believe it may be but also more balanced than expected.

Very creamy and full. Lower carbonation but a very finer bubble structure makes for a slightly crisp brew. Otherwise thick and viscous. The finish is smooth, slick, and creamy with a slide acidic twang as well. An excellent Porter to be sure. Formidable and satisfying.

Served in a 16 oz. pint glass at O'Shaughnessy's Public House in Columbus. Apparently this is the house brand, also known as O'Shaughnessy's Dam Good Porter.Dark brown in color with a tan brown head. Good head retention and nice lacing throughout. Some coffee and chocolate aromas. Those same smelss are in the flavor, along with the roasted malts. Lots of flavor, but a thinner than expected body and mouthfeel. Clean finish, very drinkable. Thanks for buying this round Harry!

Appearance: Arrives at the bar with a dark coffee color and a modest head that laces initially but does not retain particularly well

Smell: Roasty aromas with plenty of dark chocolate

Taste: Starts out with a roasty flavor with dark chocolate elements that build, mid-palate; after the swallow, their is a slight increase in the roasty bitterness but a sweetness also makes an appearance to balance out the bitter elements

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate carbonation

Drinkability: Certainly a drinkable beer (this one consumed at the Columbus airport) but nowhere near as good as the porter I had the previous night at Barley's downtown

Smell: Burnt malt and some coffee. The aromas arent that strong. Some sweetness.

Taste: Thud. Not much going on here at all. The beer has a bit of sweetness but hits the floor with a thud with the watery, stale coffee flavor. This beer is seriously lacking in this department. I wish the Scottish ale I had would have the smokiness that this does.

Mouthfeel: Watery and not complex. Smoky in a weird way. Drying in the finish.

Drinkability: Dont bother with this one. Not a very good beer. This could have been old or just unrefined. Needs work

I had this on tap at the CBC brewpub at Port Columbus airport. The appearance was real nice, dark brown-black color with a chocolate milk colored 2-finger foam. The aroma was sweet and malty, with roasted malts and a hint of chocolate in the background. The taste was much richer than expected, roasty and creamy like an oatmeal stout but with some chocolate and maybe some coffee in there as well. The mouthfeel was much better than expected, creamy and a little heavier than usually seen in this style. Overall a very good American porter, maybe one of the best I've had.

Served in a 16 oz. pint glass at the Airport location of Columbus. Note: I had to let this one sit like 25 minutes before it was reviewable. It was served incredibly cold. Poured like liquid chocolate, with a decently lived dark brown head. Nice lacing throughout.
Some espresso and chocolate on the nose
Those same aromas come back in the flavor with a host of roasted malts and a subdued bitterness.
Not sure if it was a weaker than medium body or that the carbonation was tweaked, but this one went down very smooth and quick. Very clean finish. Pretty drinkable. Though not my favorite in the world, it was well worth $10 for two on the company dime before a flight.

Appearance: served in a pint glass and WAY too cold. Deep chocolate brown color with a rocky, foamy white head. Leaves nice lacings down the side throughout.

Smell: Couldn't get much. I think because it was too damn cold. I tried agitating it a bit but with no success. Really bummed.

Taste: Made up for it here. Nice blend of coffee, carmel, and roasted malts. Very complex and balanced. No hop bitterness. A touch of sweetness on the finish.

Mouthfeel: Can't put my finger on it but it's a classic porter feel. Medium with carbonation presence but not overpowering.

Drinkability and overall: A very drinkable porter. This is one of my favorite styles and I've sampled plenty. I wouldn't say this is the best but I would put it in a "good or very good" category. I think this would be a nice introduction for someone who isn't a typical porter drinker.